Crime & Punishment of Wednesday, 1 May 2019

Source: mynewsgh.com

Teenager jailed 12 years for championing a 7-man gang rape

19-year-old Abdulai Rauf will serve 12 years in prison [File photo] 19-year-old Abdulai Rauf will serve 12 years in prison [File photo]

A Tamale High Court presided over by Justice Richard Kogyapwa has sentenced 19-year-old Abdulai Rauf to 12 years imprisonment for championing a 7-man gang rape, MyNewsGh.com reports.

According to the facts of the case as presented before the court, the complainant aged 21 (name withheld) attended an album launch with her sisters late last year at Sawaba a suburb of the Tamale Metropolis. Whiles at the event, the accused in the company of a friend came and proposed love to her and she turned them down.

They left and later returned claiming they know her boyfriend who lives at Nyohani and asked she follows them to see the person but after some resistance she obliged.

When they arrived at the scene, she saw some people on a tricycle and the accused pointed at one of them but she disclosed she has never met the person in question and turned to move away but they bundled her onto the tricycle and sped off.

It was later established that she was taken to the Zujing D /A Primary School where they pinned her to the ground and took turns to have carnal knowledge of her.

Four of the seven suspects after the act fled after the incident but the victim pleaded with the rest to show her the way out since she was lost.

While directing her, they bumped into the sister and other relations of the victim but two of the suspects managed to escape leaving behind the accused who was accosted, taken to the Chief’s palace and later handed over to the police.

He is said to have conducted police investigators round the scene of crime but failed to divulge details of his six other accomplices but was charged alone.

After trial, the 7-member jury after trial returned a unanimous verdict of guilty against accused who was accordingly sentenced by the trial judge and whisked away to begin is sentence.